Home > Consumer Reviews > Canon Pixma iP90 Colour Inkjet Printer

The Canon PIXMA iP90 is a fantastic printer, I bought one to use for work based primarily on its size; small enough to fit in a laptop bag, and light enough to carry around day-to-day. The print quality and speed came as a complete surprise; using 2x of the smallest cartridges I've seen (supplied in box: 5.5ml BCI-15 black & 7.5ml BCI-16 colour), blacks are solid and quick, colours are very good and dependant on amount of ink used, the printer will pause between pages to allow for drying time. If the black runs out, the printer can continue using a composite black utilising the colour cartridge (selectable from the 'maintenance' properties), this produces a blue-grey colour which is perfect to keep you going. The biggest surprise has to be the photo printing. Having used a Lexmark in the past and had the additional expense and hassle of switching to a 'photo' cartridge, I wasn't expecting much from the tiny 4x ink cartridges; but 'Wow!'. Using the supplied 6"x4" Canon photo paper, prints were incredible! Colours vivid and sharp, no-one would believe they hadn't been developed at a photo-shop. Seriously, I had to print in front of friends & colleagues for them to accept the wonder of this printer. Needless to say, I've just had to buy more photo paper, and 2x colleagues are actively looking to buy one on the strength of the photos alone! Oh, and to avoid my school-boy error (who reads the manuals anyway?), Photo paper should be loaded in the printer in portrait (shortest side towards the printer) . Though the ink cartridges are small, time between replacement has been surprising long. I've mainly used the printer in an office environment, shared between 3-4 users via an ethernet/USB print server, and, not surprisingly, the black has had to be replaced most often: every 2x weeks approx. The colour has faired better with 3-4x weeks between replacement, but that has been squeued with printing lots of 'proof' photo's, and a team-lead who loves lots of colour on his spreadsheets! Replacement original Canon cartridges come in twin packs, with the BCI-15 (black), and the BCI-16 (colour). Supplied software seems very good for my limited usage so far, but be aware that the drivers alone require approx. 100MB disk space! I've not really used the additional software much, but the 'easy-Photo' is exactly that: point the software at your images, select the photo(s) (and quantity of each photo) you wish to print, ensure the printer is directly attached to the computer (a gotcha for anyone else using a print server!), and print. Easy. The iP90 can be used natively via USB (additional lead required), or Infra-red (IrDa). Infra-red has been fun to play with, but is impractible for everyday use - especially with the IrDa port on my Laptop being located at the front, rather than the more usual side or rear. It is also PictBridge enabled for direct printing from a suitable digital camera. An optional Bluetooth adapter is available (Canon BU-10) which fits below the top cover, in a slot at the front left-hand side of the printer. A Lithium battery is also available (Canon LK-51B/LB-51) which attaches to the back for printing without mains attachment and a fully wireless operation. I love this printer, and I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a photo or home printer.

I rarely give out 5 stars to products but I couldn't find any faults with this printer for what I use it for. I'm a student and I needed a printer that was as compact as possible for my little student room and something that was cheap to run. I've always had good experience with canon printers, including the cheap and cheerful ones, and this is no exception. Firstly this printer is unbelieveably compact. Secondly, you can tell Canon have paid attention to detail and are aiming this printer at the style conscious and traveller. As soon as I got it, I printed out a few glossy photos to see the print quality and was impressed even though I didn't really buy it for printing photos. I also have a Canon i250 and in comparison, this printer is much quieter and quicker. The design is also good and it's always nice to look at (which says a lot!). The cartridges are super tiny (at first i thought the cartridge was the print head!) and haven't run out yet, so i presume they last quite a bit with occasional printing. Even so, the replacement cartridges are relatively cheap to replace in comparison to Canon's competitors which is another main reason for choosing Canon. If the original Canon cartridges are too expensive, you can always get a compatible range too. The only reason I would NOT recommend this printer is for those who are going to be printing large documents at any one time due to the size of the paper tray (it can hold 30 sheets at one time) and if that is what you need from your printer, then it's best to look elsewhere. This printer was designed for it's size and mobility. It would suit the person with limited space and who prints out the occasional photo or document (or essay as in my case). I suppose time would tell on how long it lasts but so far so good!

Wow, this thing does what it says on the tin! I bought it because it was small. I had tried an HP equivalent, but I was badly disappointed. The ink had to be removed, when on a plane, it was too big and heavy for the laptop bag, so has to be carried separately. The canon is small and light, but punches way above its weight. The speed and quality cannot be faulted. It works with Bluetooth beautifully, which is another failure of the HP as you cannot get the optional dongle.

I bought 5 boxes of ink to go with the Canon because I thought it would run out very quickly due to the size. The boxes not only contain two cartridges each, but they are still unopened, as I have not had to change them yet. Well done Canon!!!

This is a brilliant piece of equipment - I bought when it just came out so there was no previous reviews to read up on but, Hey...it was a very good choice. The print speed is very quick even on photos and also the ink cartridges lasts a while and they are not expensive either!! The best thing I like about this printer is the fact that it fits neatly into my rucksack along with my laptop and I can take it anywhere!! I would recommend this printer to anyone who's always on the go or has a busy life style.

There is no doubt that this is one of the best small printers on the market.
It is easy to use. Ink cartridges are easy to find. It can print superb photos aswell as normal colour or black and white documents. It is very portable. After making a mistake on buying a Selphy photo printer, we are delighted with the ip 90 that replaced it.